Wahid impeachment beckons

Wahid supporters threatened 'bloodshed'

Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid has been censured by parliament over corruption allegations for a second time.

Impeachment proceedings against him could now begin within weeks.

Parliament voted overwhelmingly in favour of the motion

Parliament voted overwhelmingly in favour of the censure motion with 363 votes for it, 52 against and 42 abstentions.

The embattled leader - who was defended only by his own tiny National Awakening Party and a small Christian group - is now under intense pressure to resign.

Analysts doubt that he will be able to survive past a few months.

One month

The state Antara news agency said that Mr Wahid was relaxing with his favourite classical music as parliament debated his future.

The president - who has repeatedly protested his innocence - has one month to respond to the parliamentary motion.

President Wahid is now a lame duck... He needs an exit strategy. Resigning would be an honourable thing to do

Political analyst Andi Malarangeng

If the legislators are not satisfied with his response, there is likely to be a special session of the highest legislative body, which needs only a simple majority to vote the president out of office.

But the BBC's Richard Galpin in Jakarta says Mr Wahid appears determined to stay in office - and he has thousands of supporters who are willing to fight a "holy war" for him.

Security forces

Jakarta has been on high alert amid fears of violence, and the legislature was guarded by about 9,000 police and troops.

President Wahid: Appealed for calm

About 6,000 supporters of the embattled president from towns in his home province of East Java rallied in pouring rain warning of bloodshed if he was ousted.

They tried to march to the parliament but stopped after negotiations with the armed policemen.

At nightfall the protestors were trucked to train and bus stations where they were to leave for their hometowns.

On Sunday, Mr Wahid appealed to his followers not to resort to violence.

The allegations

The president was first censured by parliament at the beginning of February.

He has consistently denied financial wrongdoings in the two scandals that parliament has been investigating.

One of the scandals, dubbed Bulogate, involves the president's personal masseur who allegedly fled with $4m from the national food agency, Bulog.

The other scandal, "Bruneigate", involves an alleged $2m donation from the Sultan of Brunei.